'Never again': Thousands join March for Our Lives

Saturday

PORTSMOUTH — The March for Our Lives gun law protest on Saturday in downtown Portsmouth drew thousands of people fighting for stricter gun laws in America.

“Protect our children, not our guns!” is a rallying cry for the Resistance Seacoast, Occupy New Hampshire Seacoast and other groups that sponsored the event. The quote comes from Emma González, a student survivor of the Parkland, Florida, shooting on Feb. 14 that killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

The Portsmouth march was held in coordination with a national march in Washington, D.C. and similar marches around New Hampshire and the nation.

The Leftist Marching Band played “This Land is Your Land” as hundreds danced in the closed street. Portsmouth Police Chief Robert Merner estimated the crowd at 2,500 people.

Signs helped send a message of the rally for gun law reform including “Books not bullets,” “I stand for children,” and “Less devastation, more legislation.”

The crowd included a large number of teenagers. The Feb. 14 shooting of 17 students and staff at Parkland stirred an intense call for action from scores of teens across the United States. Last week, students from high schools around the Seacoast walked out of their classes to call for gun law reform.

"The Columbine shooting happened 20 years ago," said York High School senior Carsten Rees. "I am not 20 yet. This has always been a part of our lives"

Oyster River High School junior Zoe Pavlik said school shootings and fear are a part of her normal. "I think, if it happened, where will I hide," Pavlik said. "We practice this as part of our curriculum. We are learning how to be a victim. I don't want to be a victim. I say, never again. This is not normal. We deserve better."

The students were supported by teachers, who said they do not want to be armed and do not want their schools to become fortresses.

Sarah Curtin, a teacher at Moharimet Elementary School in Madbury, pleaded to instead be "armed" with better resources.

"When I started teaching the only drill we practiced was a fire alarm," Curtin said. "Now we practice lockdowns, shelter in place and evacuations. This is the definition of insanity. Arm me instead with the resources to recognize the child in need, the tools to create a safer school community, to accept all differences, for inclusion. Let us do our jobs. Politicians, do your jobs and pass common-sense gun laws. Care about our kids as much as you care about your guns."

Portsmouth City Councilor Josh Denton tweeted a photo of a sign in the crowd that stated "Future Voters," adding "No truer sign."

A letter of support from Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., was read at the rally: "I support the Second Amendment, but supporting it does not mean unrestricted access to weapons of war. The gun lobby is not invincible. We make change happen. We vote."

Charlie and Denise Spear of York, Maine, attended the rally with their daughter Madeline, a senior at York High.

“Madeline has been led by example," Denise said. "We have always been activists for our views, but she initiated coming here today."

“It’s fantastic that she wants to be involved. Her generation is going to be cleaning up the mess that my generation made,” Charlie added.

State Rep. Renny Cushing, D-Hampton, shared the impact of gun violence on his family, including the murder of his father.

“Thank you to every young person standing up and showing leadership in this country,” he said. "Thank you for showing that our children are more important than our guns. Elections have consequences and we are living with the consequences of the last election. Come November, there is another election. Vote them out. After the Parkland shooting, our state legislators refused to even consider any legislation around gun safety. Vote them out. Register to vote."

Speaker Deb Howard of Moms Demand Action told students protesting gun violence “Moms have your back." She vowed to vote out those supported by the NRA. "We will throw you out and replace you with those who will take action," she said.

Former Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand, a Democratic gubernatorial candidate, was among the speakers and said “We need to reduce gun violence and I won’t back down."

"These students are our leaders, and out of the mouths of babes, comes wisdom," he added. "I am definitely getting an F from the NRA and we will keep going."

Kathleen McFadden, volunteer leader of the Maine chapter of Moms Demand Action said she believes she is witnessing a cultural shift.

"Every act of resistance raises the collective consciousness," she said. "There is no sending this backwards. Change may not happen today or tomorrow but these students, these parents, are mad and they are ready to take this all the way."

Deborah Alberts, a former Portsmouth High School teacher, sat and watched with tears in her eyes as the young people spoke about growing up living under the threat of a school shooting.

Sarah Brown of the Resistance Seacoast urged people to get involved in three specific goals with the first being voting out all those supported by the NRA, or who prioritize guns over people. Second, she wants what she called the silence of school administrators to stop. She said it is unacceptable for them to leave parents and students "blowing in the wind."

And finally, Brown is urging a boycott of the Kittery Trading Post, which she says is ignoring pleas to stop selling assault rifles and high-capacity magazines capable of numerous rapid fire shots. She noted L.L. Bean, in response to the school shootings, raised the age of a person buying a firearm from it to 21. L.L. Bean has stated it only sells guns and ammunition in its flagship store and its inventory is specific to hunting and target shooting, so it doesn’t sell handguns, assault weapons, high-capacity firearms or bump stocks.

"In 2018, there have been 19 school shootings," Brown said. "Since Sandy Hook in 2013 there have been 290. How is this possible?"

Brown slammed Gov. Chris Sununu for his lack of action on gun safety. She urged the crowd to vote for Marchand, who she said has a good plan to address gun violence.

The Portsmouth Police Department maintained a strong presence for crowd control and safety at the event with officers perched atop rooftops including the Customs House.

Groups participating in the Portsmouth march also included the Moms Demand Action New Hampshire and Maine chapters, New Castle Promise, Granite State Progress, Indivisible New Hampshire and Indivisible Portsmouth.

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